The IPL 2025 will begin on March 22 in Kolkata with KKR facing RCB in opening match.
The most significant alteration to the playing conditions for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) season was made by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which imposed penalties on the captain for over-rate offenses.
Captains will no longer be banned from matches, according to a decision made by the BCCI. Rather, they will receive demerit points as punishment, and only in severe circumstances will they be banned.
During the meeting on Thursday, March 20, at the BCCI office in Mumbai, the BCCI told the ten teams' captains that slow over-rate offenses would not result in match bans for them.
Rather, a system like the ICC has been implemented, wherein the captain is given demerit points according to the seriousness of the offense. For three years, these demerit points will remain in effect.
"The captain will be penalized with demerit points but will not face a match ban for the slow over-rate. The Level 1 offense will be charged 25 to 75 percent match fees with demerit points, which will be calculated for the next three years. A Level 2 offense, if exactly deemed serious, will result in four demerit points.
For every 4 demerit points accumulated, the match referee can impose a penalty, either in the form of a 100 percent fine or additional demerit points. These demerit points could potentially lead to a match ban in the future. But for slow overrate, it won't be a match ban (immediately),” Cricbuzz stated.
The Impact Player Rule, which has drawn criticism, will be reconsidered following the 2027 season, according to the BCCI, meaning it will remain in effect for the current IPL cycle.
"The IPL will continue to implement the Impact Player rule, allowing teams to substitute one player during a match, at least until 2027," a source has informed Cricbuzz.
It is understood that the BCCI has also modified the DRS rule in the playing conditions. The referral will be valid for both height wides and wides outside of the off-stump.
According to the 2024 IPL playing conditions, a player is "allowed to review any decision taken by on-field umpires concerning a wide or no ball." However, the 2025 playing conditions are still unknown.
These modifications are in addition to the removal of the saliva restriction and the inclusion of a provision for a second ball in the second innings to counter dew.